Capital: Khartoum
Area: 1,886,068 km²
Population: 35 million (July 2011) 
Ethnic groups: African, Arabs, Beja
Official language(s): Arabic, English 
Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Currency:  Sudanese pound

SOS Children's Villages' activities in the country

In August 1975 negotiations began with the Sudanese government regarding the establishment of a SOS Children's Village in Sudan. A field study revealed that the capital Khartoum would the most suitable location for the planned SOS Children's Village and construction began in the very same year. In 1978 the SOS Children's Village and adjoining SOS Kindergarten were ready to be put into action.

In 1982 the first SOS Hermann Gmeiner School was opened in Suba, about 20 minutes from the SOS Children's Village Khartoum. In 1984 the first SOS Youth Facility became operational in Arkaweet , again not far from the SOS Children's Village. In order to help SOS youths acquire a sound agricultural and commercial education, a farm was purchased on the Blue Nile in 1989 where they can cultivate the land and market the produce. In 1995, during the International Year of the Family, the foundation was laid for the construction of a well in the El Salama district (approximately 10 minutes' drive south of the SOS Children's Village Khartoum). The project comprises a deep well with a water pump and water tank and is designed to supply about 25,000 people with water.

The ongoing civil war, which started in 1955, has had a devastating effect on the living conditions of the children in Sudan. The population has been living in constant fear and deprivation, particularly in the south of the country. It was in view of this situation that a meeting with the Vice President of Sudan took place in late 1996 to discuss the establishment of a second SOS Children's Village in the south of Sudan. SOS Children's Villages was given a site in Malakal. The new SOS Children's Village became operational at the beginning of 2002.

Due to the devastating effects of the civil war, SOS Children's Villages decided in September 1998 to start an SOS Emergency Relief Programme in Sudan. In the area around the city of Wau action was taken, including six food programmes for over 2,300 and the setting up of the SOS Children's Village Camp Nazareth, which provided 330 people with shelter and medical care. The SOS Emergency Relief Programme was brought to an end in March 1999 once the main goal - the provision of the best possible support for children and families who had become victims of the war - had been achieved.

 

Heavy rains and floods severely affected various regions in September 1999. As a result, another SOS Emergency Relief Programme was implemented in Umbada, 20 km west of Khartoum, rebuilding 40 family houses, re-establishing drinking water connections and renovating the local primary school.

In Umbada, diverse ethnic groups and religions coexist, many single women with children live alone and education and training possibilities are practically nonexistent. In response to this situation, an SOS educational complex was built in 2003, consisting of a primary school, a social centre and a vocational training centre.

In March 2004, a further SOS Emergency Relief Programme was launched together with other NGOs in the South of Sudan near the city of Malakal following the first signs of a lasting peace agreement, ending 50 years of civil war. This programme focused on providing emergency help to child soldiers and giving basic skills training for their reintegration into society. In the course of the programme, which lasted till end of 2009, most of them have been reunited with their families and communities.

In September 2004, SOS Children’s Villages started to operate a Family Strengthening Programme in Umbada, which enables children who are at risk of losing the care of their family to grow within a caring family environment. To achieve this, SOS Children’s Villages works directly with families and communities to empower them to effectively protect and care for their children, in cooperation with local authorities and other service providers. 

The ongoing conflict in Darfur, the Western region of Sudan, lead SOS Sudan at the end of 2004 to start an SOS Emergency Relief Programme in the Abu Shok camp near El Fashir, capital of North Darfur, to respond to the needs of child refugees. In this refugee camp, where more than 80.000 people live in disastrous conditions, two Family Centres were established. Till end of 2009 psychological and psychiatric treatment was provided for the children and families traumatized by the events they witnessed. In 2005, 15 protected huts were also built for single women and abandoned children in the camp, where they can spend the day in a safe area. One more centre is directed towards single mothers with their children and is a place where they receive training in handicrafts or are provided with work.

A referendum that took place in Southern Sudan at the beginning of 2011 resulted with almost 99% voting in favour of independence, whereupon South Sudan is due to secede from the north on 9 July, which is the official date set for the declaration of independence. This makes necessary the founding of a new SOS Children’s Villages association that will manage the existing programmes in Malakal as well as initiate new ones.

Until the conclusion of the handing over process, the responsibility for the existing programmes of Sudan as well as South Sudan – at present all together two SOS Children’s Villages, two SOS Youth Facilities, one SOS Kindergarten, two SOS Hermann Gmeiner Schools, two SOS Social Centres and two SOS Training Centres – remains with the national office of SOS Children’s Villages Sudan in Khartoum.

Contact:
SOS Children's Villages Association of Sudan
P.O.Box 1988
Dairat El Madhi
Gomhoria St.
Khartoum, Soba
Sudan
Tel +249 183 78 2072
Fax +249 183 77 1621